Hb4 (9006) Headlight Bulbs Instead Of Specified Hir2 (9012)

[sushd]

Excuse my ignorance but if HB4 / 9006 bulbs are installed instead of the HIR2 / 9012 headlight do you lose the high / full beam functionality?

I ask because most of the HB4 listings that I came across (e.g. - on eBay / Amazon) state "low beam"!

TIA.

[tarquin]

The Hir2's are a single filament. When you switch to high beam, a motorised actuator routes the beam through the lens that you can see when looking at the light cluster from the front making it brighter.

I have changed mine to HID lights but there are legal requirements to their installation and use

1, self levelling lights

2, a lens cleaning method (washers)

Also to make sure the lens is suitable so as not to give off stray mini beams in the wrong directions that could hinder on coming drivers

David

[sushd]

Tarquin, thanks for the explanation.

Can I assume then that the HB4 bulbs do not offer same / similar functionality as the HIR2 with regards to full / high beam? It will either be low beam or high beam only (depending on the type of bulb used)??

LEDs aren't an option unfortunately (cost and regulations).. and not having high beam is also not an option since we are in a rural area!

Stuck then ..... guess will have to get some decent HIR2s from the US!

[sushd]

KAO: Aaronfife,

You replaced the headlight bulbs in your IQ last year, so which bulb did you buy from Autobulbsdirect?

HB4 (9006) ABD 55W Xenon Ice Blue

or

H4 (472) ABD 60/55W Xenon Ice Blue

In one of your posts you refer to the H4s and in another to the HB4s, and since the photographs you uploaded last year are no longer available, can't figure out which ones you bought & successfully installed.

If you have the photographs still ... great if you can upload them again.

TIA.

[tarquin]

Here is a googled extract about the original Hir2 bulbs

HIR (Halogen bulb with Infrared Reflective lamp) was originally designed/developed by GE. HIR bulb is designed to use filament to emit light as halogen bulb, which is coated with an infrared reflective film inside the glass capsule to reflect the energy produced by the filament back inside to re-heat the filament ... causing the bulb to glow much brighter than normal halogen bulb without increase more heat to the capsule itself. The advantage of the HIR bulb is - it emits roughly 75% of the light output of the HID bulbs.

So it would seem that a standard halogen HB4 type bulb is of lesser output than the Hir2 and the only true upgrade is to move to HID. Kits are £45

David

[aaronfife]

It was the HB4 9006 55W ABD xenon bright white ones. This link is too the blue ones the same as you posted. My memory isn't great but I'm very sure these were the bulbs I purchased. I actually toke them out as they aren't as bright as the standard headlight bulbs but definitely look much fresher!

http://www.autobulbsdirect.co.uk/HB4-9006-55W-ABD-Xenon-Ice-Blue-bulbs-pair.html?source=webgains&siteid=54264

[sushd]

Many thanks Tarquin and Aaron.

I have a set of high performance HB4s that I purchased some time back as a spare for my Prius Gen2 (which uses HB4 for front fog light). Will give them a try and see if they fare any better (brightness) than the stock HIR2s on IQ, with / without the help of high performance H11 front fog light bulbs.

If not, will have to live with the stock HIR2s. I suspect Mr T. uses Philips HIR2s .... the only brand I could find on the market ... so sourcing new HIR2 from elsewhere may provide no performance benefit. Will have a look inside to see which ones are installed when I get the IQ home.

I don't understand the legalities with regards to HID road use yet, so that will remain on the backburner ... unless wife refuses to drive the IQ without better lights .. leaving me with no option but to update myself on the subject!!

Thanks both, much appreciated.

[craggle]

These are the bulbs in my 2010 iQ, they are made by Toshiba.

HID's need to have headlight washing and self leveling systems fitted to the car. The washing thing is because the light gets dispersed through dirt on the lenses and ends up scattered annoying other drivers.

Same with the self leveling thing really, if you put a load in the back of the car the lights should lower themselves automatically so you don't blind other drivers.

It is now an MOT check item that if HID bulbs are fitted washing and leveling is also present, if not, the car should fail the test.

Think I've said it before but I find the iQ lights perfectly good and I live in an area with hardly any street lighting and dark country lanes. I find them perfectly up to the job?

Oh, Think I might buy myself a 9006 bulb as a spare to carry around with me just incase one of the 9012 bulbs fail in the future. :)

Craig.

[craggle]

Unless anyone who has changed their bulbs fancies selling them to me....? :)

[sushd]

From what I have been able to find on the web, neither GE nor Toshiba manufacture HIR1 (9011) or HIR2 (9012) bulbs any more.

It appears GE and Philips were the initial players in the HIR space (1st generation, as I see some refer to them as), then Toshiba (2nd generation) which ceased HIR2 production in end 2009 / early 2010 and since then it is only Philips which manufacturers HIR2 bulbs (3rd generation). The Philips HIR2 is supposedly 25% better in luminance as compared to the previous best in class Toshiba HIR2.

That said, at 3450K color temperature and 1860 lumens, they don't appear to be better than the high performance HB4s (~4000K, 1850-2100 lumens) easily available in the UK (also cheaper, if bulb life is ignored) ... at least on paper.

But yes, there is no comparison when it comes to life of the two types of bulbs (Philips HIR2 1400 hours vs. at best 500 hours from a top of the line high performance HB4).

Unless the car manufacturers have overstocked their Toshiba HIR2s requirements, they should be installing Philips HIR2s on their new cars since last 2-3 years.

[sushd]

Think I've said it before but I find the iQ lights perfectly good and I live in an area with hardly any street lighting and dark country lanes. I find them perfectly up to the job?

I do hope that my wife will feel the same as well. Fingers crossed!

Having now read on some HID forums that a "decent" road legal HID conversion kits can cost £700 upwards, it is definitely a no go! And I don't want Mr T. to void the remaining 2 years warranty on the car because I got the HIDs installed ... with self-levelling system ... and light washing & wipers too!!!

[sushd]

Interestingly, Toyota iQ in USA (Scion iQ) has a different design and setup.

It requires H11 bulbs for both low beam headlight and front fog lights, and HB3 (9005) for high beam headlight.

Why are we in UK & Europe having to live with such a design where the 1 end product is manufactured by (perhaps) just one company on planet earth?

www.autobulbsdirect.co.uk doesn't show HIR2 as headlight bulb for Toyota iQ if you search using your vehicle reg. number or use the "select your vehicle" lists!!

But, at least for now, it lists Philips HIR2 as "in stock" @ £35 a piece .... IIRC didn't find it on the site yesterday!

In case someone is interested in sourcing the "best" (and perhaps the only?) HIR2 .......

[Celica Euan]

HIR2 bulb's £23.99 from an Exeter-based eBay seller with decent feedback.

[Soeley]

I got the proper 'Spare Bulb' pack from my Toyota dealer, think I paid £28 last year. Not bad for one HIR2 bulb plus spare brake, indicator, fog & numberplate bulbs.

[sushd]

HIR2 bulb's £23.99 from an Exeter-based eBay seller with decent feedback.

Thanks for that! When I was searching for HIR2 day before yesterday on eBay / Amazon it was throwing up sellers from overseas! Looks like UK has received a big HIR2 shipment!

The seller is Snows Group, a Toyota Dealer. Their registered address on eBay matches their Toyota dealership in Exeter.

I have posted a question enquiring who the manufacturer of the bulb is. Will post here as soon as I get a response.

[sushd]

A bit ambiguous response received - "The main manufacturer of Toyota's bulbs is Phillips".

[FROSTYBALLS]

This reminds me of a similar recent topic on the Yaris forum - http://www.toyotaownersclub.com/forums/topic/153247-yaris-hybrid-headlights/page-2?hl=+replacement%20+bulbs

In the end the original poster decided to make do with the OE bulbs.

[Parts-King]

I think the point is there are no uprated HIR2 yet are there?

[sushd]

The idea was to ascertain whether the advertised Toyota OE bulb is the "Philips" 9012LLC1 one or if Toyota / the vendor (Snows) is still selling the Toshiba HIR2 from old stock that they may still have.

Philips HIR2 (9012LLC1) is much better than the Toshiba HIR2, at least as per the information available on the web, and AFAIK, the only HIR2 being manufactured currently.

Is the Philips 9012LLC1 better / same as the high performance HB4 (which can be fitted in place of HIR2 in iQ) e.g. - Osram Nightbreaker Unlimited HB4? Don't know ... yet.

[Parts-King]

I don't think you could guarantee who makes the bulb, the ones I have on the shelf (standard HIR2LL) are made by Philips, but Toshiba could be an alternative supplier. Surely the same spec bulb cannot be so vastly different can it? I doubt it, Toyota would demand a certain specification to ensure consistancy. It would be another story buying Chinese copies, but not a genuine bulb

Kingo

[craggle]

This thread reminded me of a previous conversation I had with Soeley who mentioned above that he bought the Toyota bulb kit. A quick search of the forum reveals that the Toyota spare bulb kit for the iQ has a part number of 90981-YZZG2 Thanks to Soeley for posting that.

I have just dropped into my local dealer on the way home and they confirmed the part number for me, said it was £30.14 including the VAT and said they could have one in the shop by Saturday. I gladly accepted and ordered one. I'll post a picture once it arrives and see what make the headlight bulb is.

Craig.

[FROSTYBALLS]

The colour temperature of the Philips HIR2 bulbs is 3450K. Osram Nightbreaker Plus +90% are 3700K and Ultimate are 3700K. Factory fitted HID systems are between 4100 and 5000K.

[sushd]

I don't think you could guarantee who makes the bulb, the ones I have on the shelf (standard HIR2LL) are made by Philips, but Toshiba could be an alternative supplier. Surely the same spec bulb cannot be so vastly different can it? I doubt it, Toyota would demand a certain specification to ensure consistancy. It would be another story buying Chinese copies, but not a genuine bulb

Kingo

Toshiba stopped producing HIR2 in end 2009 / 2010, so I would want to know what I am paying for - an out-of-production Toshiba or the Philips 9012LLC1 which has 25% more luminance (30Mcd/sq. m.) than the Toshiba and 40% higher life span (Tc) than Toshiba.

A "significant" improvement, in my opinion, between the (only) two.

So, Mr T might not be selling Chinese bulbs but I would rather source the Philips from open market than buying Toshiba from Mr T., given the facts above.

For some, the question may be - why buy Toshiba when a better one of the same type is available (Philips HIR2)?

For some, the question may be - why buy HIR2 when/if high performance HB4 offers more brightness and reach, and can be fitted?

For some, the question may be - I drive on well lit roads and I don't need to worry about the brightness / reach of the bulb installed in the car, so do I really need to bother?

A personal choice based on personal circumstances, IMHO ...

[Soeley]

This thread reminded me of a previous conversation I had with Soeley who mentioned above that he bought the Toyota bulb kit. A quick search of the forum reveals that the Toyota spare bulb kit for the iQ has a part number of 90981-YZZG2 Thanks to Soeley for posting that.

I have just dropped into my local dealer on the way home and they confirmed the part number for me, said it was £30.14 including the VAT and said they could have one in the shop by Saturday. I gladly accepted and ordered one. I'll post a picture once it arrives and see what make the headlight bulb is.

Craig.

Craig, when you collect it open it there and then to make sure they have given you the correct kit. The first one they gave me had the wrong headlight bulb, the main reason for getting it !

They got the right one in a few days later :)

[Celica Euan]

"why buy HIR2 when high performance HB4 offer more brightness and reach, and can be fitted?"

Reading about it, it looks like HB4 offer worse light while running hotter.

From http://www.toyotaownersclub.com/forums/topic/103531-bulbs-hir2-9012/page-7

I've tested these 80Watt HB4 bulbs.
It was no succes!!!
I
went to a friendly Honda dealer to see the light result (light image,
or how do you call it) and compared one HIR2 with a one HB4.
The HIR2 has a much better "lightimage" and shines far more bright then the 80W HB4 bulb.
So
I went home to put the HIR2-bulb back and the unit with the HB4-bulb
smelled i bit burned. I'm glad the unit didn't melt in the inside cause I
just drove for aproximately 45min. with this HB4 bulb(with cold weather
on a highway).
Conclusion; HB4 gets far to hot!!!